KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has released the preseason edition of the 2026 Netting Professionals-NAIA Coaches' Top 25 Poll. Carroll College checks in at No. 11 in the initial poll of the nation's coaches.
Following a 2025 campaign that saw Carroll finish at No. 13 in the national poll the Fighting Saints will begin the 2026 season as the No. 11-ranked team in the NAIA.
After beginning the season at the No. 25 spot in 2025, the Saints made steady progress throughout the year. Carroll went 9-3 overall, and 5-1 in Frontier-West Divisional play. The body of work was strong enough for the Saints to host, and win, their first NAIA Football Championship Series game at Nelson Stadium since 2014, beating St. Thomas (Fla.) in the opening round.
This year Carroll will look to repeat the upward trend throughout the season, however, the task grows more difficult with only ten teams in the nation ranked higher.
Carroll is one of six teams in the Frontier Conference to appear either ranked or in the receiving votes portion of the poll. The Saints are joined by No. 4 College of Idaho, No. 5 Montana Tech, No. 18 Montana Western, No. 25 Dakota State, and (RV) Dickinson State.
The No. 11 team in the ranks will be one of the first in the nation to hit the field, as the Saints officially kick-off their 2026 season Thursday evening at 6 p.m., welcoming MSU-Northern to town for a non-conference tilt on Valley Bank Field at Nelson Stadium. Tickets for the game are available online HERE.
The preseason poll is the first of seven coaches polls in 2026, followed by three national selection committee polls, a final ARC rating Nov. 15, and a postseason poll Jan. 4. The 2026 NAIA football season culminates with the NAIA National Championship Game in Fort Worth, Texas, Dec. 19 at Crowley ISD Multipurpose Stadium, live on the NAIA family of broadcast networks at www.naia.org/watch.
| RANK |
INSTITUTION [FIRST-PLACE VOTES] |
2025 RECORD |
| 1 |
Grand View (Iowa) [13] |
14-0 |
| 2 |
Keiser (Fla.) |
12-1 |
| 3 |
Benedictine (Kan.) |
12-2 |
| 4 |
College of Idaho |
11-2 |
| 5 |
Montana Tech |
12-1 |
| 6 |
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) |
10-2 |
| 7 |
Morningside (Iowa) |
9-3 |
| 8 |
Dordt (Iowa) |
10-1 |
| T-9 |
Friends (Kan.) |
12-1 |
| T-9 |
Indiana Wesleyan |
9-3 |
| 11 |
Carroll (Mont.) |
9-3 |
| 12 |
Marian (Ind.) |
8-4 |
| 13 |
William Penn (Iowa) |
11-2 |
| 14 |
Campbellsville (Ky.) |
8-3 |
| 15 |
Southeastern (Fla.) |
9-3 |
| 16 |
St. Thomas (Fla.) |
7-4 |
| 17 |
Saint Francis (Ind.) |
10-3 |
| 18 |
Montana Western |
7-3 |
| 19 |
Evangel (Mo.) |
9-3 |
| 20 |
Georgetown (Ky.) |
7-3 |
| 21 |
McPherson (Kan.) |
9-2 |
| 22 |
Southwestern (Kan.) |
8-3 |
| 23 |
Reinhardt (Ga.) |
7-4 |
| 24 |
Northwestern (Iowa) |
6-4 |
| 25 |
Dakota State (S.D.) |
8-2 |
Receiving Votes: Baker (Kan.), Bethel (Tenn.), Concordia (Neb.), Cumberland (Tenn.), Dickinson State (N.D.), Kansas Wesleyan, Louisiana Christian, MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.), Olivet Nazarene (Ill.), OUAZ (Ariz.), Pikeville (Ky.), Saint Xavier (Ill.), St. Francis (Ill.), Taylor (Ind.), Texas Wesleyan.
Be sure to visit www.carrollathletics.com later this week for a full preview of the season opener, and for complete coverage of the Fighting Saints all season long.
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